Chilean miner Edison Pea is living a dream.
He arrived in New York City early Thursday as a guest of the New York Road Runners to participate in Sunday's ING New York City Marathon - and he feels blessed to be here.
"It's a dream come true," he said through a translator at a Thursday afternoon press conference. "I mean the first dream come true was to see the light of day again. I had to go through all of this to be here today and I did."
Pea, 34, fielded a barrage of reporter questions, got suited up with a new pair of Asics and a Timex watch presented by former New York Giants star Amani Toomer, and treated the crowd to a few bars of his favorite Elvis Presley song, "Return to Sender."
It's the tune that kept him moving while he was trapped a half mile underground for 69 days, wondering if he'd ever see daylight again.
"The first thing I asked for was an iPod with Elvis tunes. I thought i would never hear him again," he said after belting out the chorus with a practiced Presley drawl.
Pea ran between three and six miles each day while he was trapped underground in the collapsed mine. The shorter distance was enough to keep him fit and sane until he was rescued, but it's a far cry from the 26.2 miles he'll attempt to pound out Sunday.
"We're happy for Edison just to be here," said NYRR CEO Mary Wittenberg. "We are encouraging a walking/running approach, but we'll see what happens."
Pea said he hopes to cross the finish line in six hours. The miner was humble when asked whether he views himself and his fellow miners as heroes.
"People say that we're heroes but I don't think we are. It's just what destiny had in store for us. We had a very slim chance of surviving and we did and we're here."
Pea said it was so dark in the mine, he couldn't see his hand in front of his face as he ran back and forth through the tunnels.
His thoughts turned to his fate and when he ran, and those thoughts turned into a determination to survive.
"What I thought about as I ran in the mile was that I was going to beat destiny," he said. "I was going to turn the tables on destiny. I was saying to that mine, 'I can outrun you. I'm going to run until you are just tired and bored of me.' And I did it."
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